Abstract

This thesis explores authentic spirituality in the secular age by defining three key terms. It defines the secular age as one in which for the first time in human history, a purely self-sufficient humanism is possible. By using the work of philosopher Charles Taylor, it tells the story of the numerous developments and central anthropocentric shifts which had to occur in order for the secular to emerge. This thesis explores the development of the meaning of the term religion in the work of Wilfred Cantwell Smith, who argues that in modernity, a religion refers to a system of belief, by the generic religion refers to the sum total of these systems of belief. This thesis goes on to define spirituality as understood by romantic liberal modernity as a personal quest of self-actualization. The ten main tenets of romantic liberal modernity are outlined using the work of Galen Watts. An example of one such spirituality called wellness culture is explored through the work of Tara Isabella Burton. Finally, this thesis proposes an alternate definition of spirituality using the work of Keiji Nishitani and Bernard Lonergan, for whom spirituality is an orientation towards or relationship with reality. This definition of spirituality stresses the notion of authenticity, which for Bernard Lonergan is grounded in self-transcendence. Self-transcendence is achieved through intellectual conversion, moral conversion, and religious conversion.